Pernell Roberts, 'Bonanza' and 'Trapper John' star, dies - CNN.com Pernell Roberts, 'Bonanza' and 'Trapper John' star, dies By Alan Duke, CNN Pernell Roberts, standing at center, co-starred in "Bonanza" with Dan Blocker, left, Lorne Greene, right, and Michael Landon. STORY HIGHLIGHTS Roberts, 81, died at his California home, his lawyer says Roberts played Adam Cartwright, eldest of "Bonanza" brothers Roberts was civil rights advocate, marched with Martin Luther King, family says He's known to younger viewers as post-M*A*S*H Dr. "Trapper" John McIntyre RELATED TOPICS Television Los Angeles, California (CNN) -- Actor Pernell Roberts, who played the eldest Cartwright brother in TV's "Bonanza," died at his Malibu, California, home Sunday at 81, his lawyer said. Younger TV viewers may remember Roberts from the lead role in "Trapper John, M.D.," a medical drama that aired on CBS for seven years, ending in 1986.

Roberts, a native of Waycross, Georgia, spent much of his adult life "pursuing his dream of equality for all," according to a family statement released by his lawyer, Richard Stone. Roberts spent the first decade of his acting career on stage -- including Broadway -- before he moved to Hollywood to act in movies. His first film was "Desire Under the Elms," starring Sophia Loren and Burl Ives. In 1959, he landed the role of Adam Cartwright, the handsome and smart son of rancher Ben Cartwright (Lorne Greene) in the new western series "Bonanza." His character was serious and introspective, in contrast to younger half-brothers Hoss (Dan Blocker) and Little Joe (Michael Landon). The move to a television series "was a difficult transition," the family statement said. "Accustomed to freely moving from part to part, now being in a wildly popular show, without costume changes, about three grown men living at home with their father, he found did not hold much creative interest for him," it said. Roberts walked alongside the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

in the historic 1965 march from Selma to Montgomery in Alabama, the family said. "On the set of 'Bonanza,' he protested the use of all white crews and guest stars, finding some support but never enough to satisfy his sense of outrage," the statement said. Roberts left the popular western after the end of the sixth season in 1965, although "Bonanza" stayed in production for another eight years. While the show's storyline kept open the possibility of his return to the Ponderosa ranch, Roberts never did. He never gained much of a foothold in film, but stage acting kept Roberts busy for more than a decade. He also guest starred in more than 60 TV series. His role of Dr. "Trapper" John McIntyre, starting in 1979, was a spin-off of a character from the hit TV comedy "M*A*S*H." Roberts played the balding physician working in a San Francisco hospital nearly three decades after he returned from the Korean War. His last regular TV job was in 1991 when he was host of the short-lived ABC police anthology "FBI: The Untold Stories." Roberts was married four times.

His only son, Chris, was killed in a motorcycle crash in 1989. His fourth wife, Eleanor Criswill, was by his side when he died Sunday, the family said. CNN's Brittany Kaplan contributed to this report. Share this on: Pernell Roberts - IMDb IMDb Actor | Soundtrack Best recalled as the eldest son and first member of the "Bonanza" Cartwright clan to permanently leave the Ponderosa in the hopes of greener acting pastures, dark, deep-voiced and durably handsome Pernell Roberts' native roots lay in Georgia. Born Pernell Elvin Roberts, Jr. on May 18, 1928, in North Carolina and moved to Waycross as an infant, he ... See full bio » Born: a list of 44 people created 19 May 2011 a list of 108 people created 08 Nov 2011 a list of 8 people created 30 Aug 2013 a list of 44 people created 31 Jan 2014 a list of 33 people created 4 months ago Do you have a demo reel?

Add it to your IMDbPage How much of Pernell Roberts's work have you seen? User Polls Nominated for 1 Primetime Emmy. Another 1 win & 1 nomination. See more awards » Known For Trapper John, M.D. Trapper John McIntyre (1979-1986) 1990 The Young Riders (TV Series) Hezekiah Horn 1981 Incident at Crestridge (TV Movie) Mayor Hill 1980 The Love Boat (TV Series) Brian Mallory 1979 Hot Rod (TV Movie) Sheriff Marsden 1979 The Night Rider (TV Movie) Alex Sheridan 1979 The Paper Chase (TV Series) Professor Marc Justin 1978 The Immigrants (TV Movie) Anthony Cassala 1977-1978 Quincy M.E. (TV Series) Dr. Chester Banning / Sheriff Connelly 1978 The Rockford Files (TV Series) B.J.

Anderson 1977 Man from Atlantis (TV Series) Clint Hollister 1977 Westside Medical (TV Series) Walt Dahlman 1977 Police Woman (TV Series) Wagner 1977 Most Wanted (TV Series) Bailey - The Reunion (1977) ... Johnny Hillman 1977 Switch (TV Series) 1977 Barnaby Jones (TV Series) Daniel Matthews 1976 Spencer's Pilots (TV Series) Pete Sewell 1976 Jigsaw John (TV Series) Roger - The House of Cards (1976) ... Cleary / Phil Denton 1975 Bronk (TV Series) 1975 Ellery Queen (TV Series) Rosh Kaleel / Barney Groves / Maj. George Pearson 1975 The Deadly Tower (TV Movie) Lieutenant Lee 1975 Medical Story (TV Series) Dr. Louis Kinoy 1974-1975 Police Story (TV Series) Sgt. Sal Grosser / Charlie Rivas - To Steal a Million (1975) ... Sgt.

Sal Grosser - Chief (1974) ... Charlie Rivas 1974 The Odd Couple (TV Series) Billy Joe - Candidate for Murder (1974) ... Senator Griffith 1973 Mannix (TV Series) 1967-1973 Mission: Impossible (TV Series) Boomer / Chief Manuel Corba / Colonel Hans Krim / ... 1971-1973 Marcus Welby, M.D. (TV Series) Tom Boyd / Roger 1972 Night Gallery (TV Series) Joe Bellman / Joe Bellman (segment "The Tune in Dan's Cafe") 1972 The Sixth Sense (TV Series) Paul Pettigrew 1972 Assignment: Munich (TV Movie) C.C. Bryan 1966-1971 The Virginian (TV Series) Stranger / Jim Boyer Sr.

1971 Hawaii Five-O (TV Series) Lon Phillips 1969 The Silent Gun (TV Movie) Sam Benner 1967-1968 The Big Valley (TV Series) Ed Tanner / Patrick Madigan 1967 CBS Playhouse (TV Series) Lenny Marshall - Dear Friends (1967) ... Lenny Marshall 1957-1967 Gunsmoke (TV Series) 1960 The Detectives (TV Series) Rod Halleck - House Call (1960) ... Rod Halleck 1959 Buckskin (TV Series) 1959 77 Sunset Strip (TV Series) Tony Gray 1959 One Step Beyond (TV Series) Sgt. Vaill 1959 Cimarron City (TV Series) O'Hara 1958 Zane Grey Theater (TV Series) Lew Banning / Jet Mason 1958 Northwest Passage (TV Series) Captain Jacques Chavez 1958 Tombstone Territory (TV Series) Johnny Coster - Man Wanted (1958) ...

Deuce Braden - Misfire (1957) ... Salt River Smith 1958 Trackdown (TV Series) Bonanza (TV Series) (1 episode, 1964) (performer - 3 episodes, 1961 - 1963) - The Cheating Game (1964) ... ("A Mighty Fortress is Our God (Ein' Feste Burg)", uncredited) - The Wooing of Abigail Jones (1962) ... (performer: "Early One Morning") - Broken Ballad (1961) ... (performer: "Broken Ballad", "Until I Find the Only One for Me" - uncredited) Hide 2004 The Last Shot (special thanks) Hide - Operation Headache (1993) ... Himself - Host - Yablonski (1993) ...

Himself - Host 1985 Circus of the Stars #10 (TV Special documentary) Himself 1963-1965 The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (TV Series) Himself - Guest 1964 Hollywood Backstage (TV Series) Himself 1964 The Match Game (TV Series) Himself - Team Captain 1964 You Don't Say (TV Series) Himself Personal Details Other Works: "A Clearing in the Woods" (1957). Written by Arthur Laurents . Music by Laurence Rosenthal . Directed by Joseph Anthony . Belasco Theatre: 10 Jan 1957- 9 Feb 1957 (36 performances). Cast: Robert Culp (as "Pete"), Tom Hatcher , Joan Lorring , Lin McCarthy , Barbara Myers , Anne Pearson , Pernell Roberts (as "George"), Kim Stanley (as "... See more » Publicity Listings: Did You Know? Personal Quote: Isn't it just a bit silly for three adult males to get father's permission for everything they do? I haven't grown at all since the series began four years ago. I have an impotent role.

Everywhere I turn, there's the father image. - In 1963 when Bonanza (1959) was too remote from reality. See more » Trivia: Had attended but did not graduate from Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta. See more » Trademark: Pernell Roberts (Actor) - Pics, Videos, Dating, & News Pernell Roberts Male Born May 18, 1928 Pernell Elven Roberts, Jr. was an American stage, movie and television actor, as well as a singer. In addition to guest starring in over 60 television series, he was best known for his roles as Ben Cartwright's eldest son, Adam Cartwright, on the western series Bonanza, a role he played from 1959 to 1965 â and as chief surgeon Dr.

John McIntyre, the title character on Trapper John, M.D..… Read More related links 'm.A.S.H.' Actor Wayne Rogers Dies At 82 Huffington Post - Jan 01, 2016 ' LOS ANGELES (AP) â Wayne Rogers, whose Trapper John McIntyre alongside Alan Alda\'s Hawkeye Pierce brought mischief, martinis and meatball surgery to the masses in the 1970s every week on \"M.A.S.H.,\" has died. The actor was surrounded by family when he died Thursday in Los Angeles of complications from pneumonia at age 82, his publicist and longtime friend Rona Menashe told The Associated Press. Rogers\' army surgeon Trapper John was one of the most beloved characters â and hal... Jay Weston: Yamashiro, The Very Romantic Hollywood Restaurant! Huffington Post - Aug 13, 2013 '\n \nThe very ornate entrance to Yamashiro\n\n The dinner invitation was intriguing...

to attend a special Caribbean dinner cooked by a guest chef, the Haitian-borne woman Manouschka Guerrier, who had impressed me on her TV stint as \"The Private Chef.\" Where? At YAMASHIRO (1999 N. Sycamore Ave., 323-466-5125, just east of La Brea on Franklin Ave. near the Hollywood Bowl.). Yamashiro, oh my, I had not been here since writing about it some nine years ago while attending the wedding ... L'altro Volto Di Euro2012: Senzatetto Si Preparano Alla World Cup Yahoo News - Jun 15, 2012 ' Roma, (TMNews) - Anche i senzatetto in Polonia si preparano per giocare la propria partita. Mentre gli strapagati calciatori delle nazionali europee si contendono il titolo di campioni del Vecchio Continente, loro si allenano per il Campionato mondiale di Homeless, che si terrÃ in Messico a ottobre. Ã l\'altra faccia degli Europei 2012.

Robert Trykowski Ã¨ uno dei giocatori della squadra dei senzatetto: in campo cercano di allontanare i problemi legati all\'alcool e alla droga. Per Robert il... Answer Man: Why Did Nbc Pull The Plug On 'bonanza'? BND.com - Jun 07, 2012 ' In the 1960s TV Western \"Bonanza,\" how was <mark>Pernell Roberts</mark>, who played Adam Cartwright, written out of the series? Also, tell me please: What happened to the other Cartwrights andâ¦ Click to Continue Â» ' Learn about the memorable moments in the evolution of Pernell Roberts. CHILDHOOD 1928 Birth Roberts was born in 1928 in Waycross, Georgia, the only child of Pernell Elven Roberts, Sr. (1907â1980), a Dr Pepper salesman, and Minnie (Betty) Myrtle Morgan Roberts (1910â1988).

… Read More During his high-school years, Pernell played the horn, acted in school and church plays, and sang in local USO shows. He attended, but did not graduate from, Georgia Tech. Read Less TEENAGE 1946 18 Years Old Enlisting in 1946, he served for two years in the United States Marine Corps. … Read More He played the tuba and horn in the Marine Corps Band, and he was also skilled at playing the sousaphone and percussion. He later attended, also without graduating, the University of Maryland, where he had his first exposure to acting in classical theatre. He appeared in four productions while a student, including Othello and Antigone, but left school to act in summer stock. Read Less TWENTIES 1949 - 1952 4 More Events 1949 21 Years Old In 1949, he made his professional stage debut with Moss Hart and Kitty Carlisle in The Man Who Came to Dinner at the Olney Theatre in Olney, Maryland.

… Read More Later, he spent eight weeks at the Bryn Mawr College Theatre in Philadelphia, portraying Dan in Emlyn Williams' Night Must Fall and Alfred Doolittle in Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion. Read Less 1950 22 Years Old Roberts moved to Washington, DC, in 1950 and supported himself with a variety of jobs while performing with the Arena Stage Theater for two years. … Read More He performed in numerous productions, including Steinbeck's Burning Bright, The Adding Machine, The Firebrand, The Deletable Judge, The Taming of the Shrew ("Petruchio"), Playboy of the Western World, Children of Darkness, School for Wives, The Inspector General, The Glass Menagerie, Mr. Arcularis, Twelfth Night, The Scarecrow, The Importance of Being Earnest, Julius Caesar, She Stoops to Conquer, School for Scandal, Three Men on a Horse, Faith of Our Fathers (Sesquicentennial Amphitheatre), and Dark of the Moon.<br /><br /> He performed with the Port Players, in Milwaukee, in the comedy To Dorothy a Son, and other productions.

"Roberts again is master of all situations, as he has been in the 9 previous productions of the season".<br /><br /> He performed with the Brattle Theatre's production of Othello and Henry IV Part I, which was later brought to the New York City Center (Playbill, January 1957) and later, Guys and Dolls with the Cohassett Music Circus. Read Less 1951 23 Years Old Roberts married four times, first in 1951 to Vera Mowry - a professor of theater history at Washington State University and subsequently Hunter College, as well as professor emerita of the Ph.D. program in theatre at City University of New York â with whom he had his only child (Jonathan Christopher "Chris" Roberts, b. … Read More October 1951). Pernell and his first wife later divorced. Chris Roberts, who lived variously in California and New York, attended Franconia College.

Read Less 1952 24 Years Old In 1952, he moved to New York City, where he appeared first off-Broadway in one-act operas and ballets with the North American Lyric Theatre, with the Shakespearewrights, at the Equity Library Theatre, and later on Broadway with performances in Tonight in Samarkand (also in Washington, DC), The Lovers opposite Joanne Woodward, and A Clearing in the Woods with Robert Culp and Kim Stanley. 1955 27 Years Old He won a Drama Desk Award in 1955 for his performance in an off-Broadway rendition of Macbeth, which was followed by the role of Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet. … Read More He performed in Twelfth Night, Merchant of Venice, Dr. Faustus, and The Taming of the Shrew at the American Shakespeare Festival, and later on Broadway. He performed in St. Joan (1954, Cleveland), Down in the Valley (at the Provincetown Playhouse), The Duchess of Malfi, Measure for Measure, and King John..

Read Less 1956 28 Years Old In 1956, he returned to the Olney Theatre, starring opposite Jan Farrand in Much Ado About Nothing with the Players, Inc. group. … Read More The same year, Roberts made his television debut in the "Shadow of Suspicion" episode of Kraft Television Theater, followed by guest-starring roles in Whirlybirds, Gunsmoke, Cimarron City, Buckskin, Sugarfoot, and Cheyenne. Read Less 1957 29 Years Old He signed a contract with Columbia Pictures in 1957 and made his film debut a year later as one of Burl Ives' contentious sons in Desire Under the Elms (1958). … Read More The film was nominated for a Best Cinematography Academy Award.

He also landed a character role in The Sheepman (1958), opposite Glenn Ford and Shirley MacLaine.<br /><br /> He continued to guest-star on television shows such as episodes of Shirley Temple Storybook Theater ("The Emperor's New Clothes", "Rumplestiltskin", "The Sleeping Beauty", and "Hiawatha"), the live-broadcast Matinee Theater, where he starred again in Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing, and in The Heart's Desire. This was followed by appearances in Trackdown, Buckskin, and episodes of Zane Grey Theater. Roberts guest-starred as Captain Jacques Chavez on the NBC adventure series Northwest Passage (1958), based on the life of Major Robert Rogers in the French and Indian War.

Read Less THIRTIES 1958 30 Years Old He appeared with fellow guest star Fay Spain in the 1958 episode "Pick up the Gun" of Tombstone Territory and played the lead villain in the 31st episode ("Hey Boy's Revenge") of Have Gun - Will Travel, portraying a killer boss exploiter of Chinese coolie laborers.Bonanza Dcanary.com/Pernell In 1959, Roberts guest-starred in episodes of General Electric Theater, Cimarron City, Sugarfoot, Lawman, One Step Beyond, Bronco, 77 Sunset Strip, The Detectives, and House Call. 1959 31 Years Old Also in 1959, he co-starred with James Coburn in the film Ride Lonesome. "If Roberts felt typecast by Westerns, they also provided his finest role in this film, arguably the greatest of the B-films, starring Randolph Scott and directed by Budd Boetticher. … Read More Roberts recognized the film's classic structure; his engaging outlaw, Sam Boone, counterpoints Scott's granite-faced Ben Brigade, maintaining the tension of whether they will work together or clash.

He similarly played off James Coburn, who was making his film debut as Boone's quiet sidekick, Whit."<br /><br /> The same year, he was cast in Bonanza.<br /><br /> Roberts played Ben Cartwright's urbane eldest son Adam, in the Western television series Bonanza. Unlike his brothers, Adam was a university-educated architectural engineer. Read Less 1962 34 Years Old Roberts married Judith Anna LeBrecque on October 15, 1962; they divorced in 1971. 1964 36 Years Old Roberts, having largely been "a stage actor, accustomed as he was to a rigorous diet of the classics" and to freely move about from part to part, found the "transition to a television series", playing the same character, "without costume changes," a difficult one. "It was perhaps not surprising that, despite enormous success, he bolted from Bonanza after the 1964â65 season, criticizing the show's simple-minded content and lack of minority actors ".

… Read More It particularly distressed him that his character, a man in his 30s, had to defer continually to the wishes of his widowed father, and he reportedly disliked the series itself, calling it â "junk" television and accusing NBC of "perpetuating banality and contributing to the dehumanization of the industry." The equally self-critical Roberts ("I guess I'll never be satisfied with my own work"), "had long disdained the medium's commercialization of his craft and its mass production, assembly-line mindset." Read Less Adam Cartwright - Bonanza Characters - ShareTV Best recalled as the first member of the Cartwright clan to permanently leave the Ponderosa in the hopes ... Character Bio Georgia-born Pernell Roberts played eldest son Adam, an architectural engineer with a university education. Adam built the impressive ranch house ("The Philip Diedesheimer Story", Oct. 31, 1959; "Bonanza: The Return", NBC TV, April 21, 1993).

Roberts disdained the assembly-line mindset of serial television (a rigid 34 episode season), and fought with series writers regarding Adam's lack of independence, noting that his thirty-plus year old character was dependent on his "Pa's" approval. Despite the show's success, Roberts departed the series after the 1964–65 season (after 202 episodes) and returned to stage productions. Attempts to replace Adam with Cartwright cousin Will (Guy "Zorro" Williams), and Little Joe's maternal half-brother Clay (Barry Coe) were unsuccessful ("Bonanza: Scenery of the Ponderosa: Candy Canaday"). A season six storyline called for Adam, with his new bride and step daughter, leaving the Ponderosa. After four weeks, scripts were revised by having Guy Williams' Will depart the series prematurely, with Adam's fiancee at his side. It was Landon, not Roberts, who objected to the infusion of any new Cartwrights ("Bonanza: Scenery of the Ponderosa: Candy Canaday"). After Roberts did leave the following year, it was eventually mentioned that Adam had gone "to sea", and in the later movies he had emigrated to Australia.

In Autumn of 1972, the series producers considered inviting Roberts back in the wake of Dan Blocker's passing: "One suggestion was to return Pernell Roberts, who had played another Cartwright son when Bonanza first hit the airwaves fourteen years ago. We only considered that briefly," {producer Richard] Collins says... Some people felt it was a logical step- the oldest son returning at a time of family need- but most of us didn't think it would work." (Dick Kleiner, NEA, July 18, 1972. Episode Screenshots Pernell Roberts Dies Pernell Roberts 18 May 1928 - 24 January 2010 Pernell Roberts, a versatile actor best remembered for his portrayal of the handsome, eldest Cartwright son on the classic television western "Bonanza" and later as the lead character in the medical drama "Trapper John, M.D.," died at his Malibu home Sunday. He was 81. His death after a two-year battle with cancer was confirmed by his wife, Eleanor Criswell.

Roberts became a star as Adam Cartwright , the heir apparent of the fictional Ponderosa ranch, a role he filled from the show's debut in 1959 until 1965, when he left the cast despite the series' immense popularity. "Bonanza" remained on the air for eight more years without him. The longest-running TV western after "Gunsmoke" and the first to be broadcast in color, �Bonanza� broke the mold for its genre with its emphasis on character development over gunplay. The cast was headed by Lorne Greene, who played thrice-widowed patriarch Ben, and also featured Dan Blocker as the lovably oafish middle son, Hoss, and Michael Landon as the hot-headed youngest son, Little Joe. Roberts was the well-educated and mature brother, who played Adam with a suave manner that won a legion of fans. He found the role unfulfilling, however, and left the show at its peak, a decision that caused him to be "scratched off by most of his contemporary fellow actors as some kind of a nut," Times critic Hal Humphrey wrote in 1967.

Roberts had several complaints, chief among which was the relationship between Ben Cartwright and his grown sons. "Isn't it just a bit silly for three adult males to get Father's permission for everything they do?" Roberts said in the Washington Post a few years before he departed the cast. "I have an impotent role. Everywhere I turn, there's the father image." A political liberal who later took part in civil rights protests, he also chafed at the mostly white complexion of the cast. The notable exception was Victor Sen Yung, who played a stereotypical Chinese house servant. Born May 18, 1928, in Waycross, Ga., Roberts grew up poor on the edge of the state's Okefenokee Swamp. In high school, he played the horn and acted in school and church plays. He attended Georgia Tech and the University of Maryland but did not earn a degree from either institution, and he served in the Marine Corps band at Quantico, Va. He began his theatrical career in 1950 at the Arena Stage in Washington, D.C, where he performed in more than a dozen plays.

In 1952 he moved to New York City and appeared in one-act operas and ballets with the North American Lyric Theater. In 1955 he won a Drama Desk Award as the best off-Broadway actor for his performance in "Macbeth." On Broadway he appeared with Joanne Woodward in "The Lovers." In 1957 he arrived in Hollywood and won roles in three movies, including "Desire Under the Elms" (1958), which starred Sophia Loren, Anthony Perkins and Burl Ives. True stardom eluded him, however, until he landed the part of Cartwright's No. 1 son in NBC's "Bonanza." He helped his TV family maintain the ranch and fight off desperadoes and other scoundrels for six years, during which he also was given the opportunity to show off his singing voice a number of times. But he frequently clashed with the show's writers and producer "about the scripts, character development and other things" and grew so unhappy about "artistic compromises" that he became, as one headline described his decision, a "Bonanza Deserter." His character was written out of the show.

Some of Roberts' first television roles after leaving "Bonanza" were on rival westerns, including "Gunsmoke," "The Big Valley" and "The Virginian." He also appeared on other leading series of the 1970s, such as " Hawaii Five-O" and "Marcus Welby, M.D." His comeback role was Dr. John McIntyre in the CBS drama �Trapper John, M.D.� based on the character from the popular comedy " MASH." His work in "Trapper John" earned Roberts an Emmy nomination for best dramatic actor in 1981. After the show ended in 1986, he made guest appearances on other series and TV movies, narrated a documentary and hosted the short-lived " FBI: The Untold Stories" (1991). He retired in the late 1990s. A son from his first marriage, Chris, died in 1989. He is survived by Criswell, his fourth wife. Services will be private.

Roberts said in several interviews that he harbored no regrets about abandoning "Bonanza," which he said he left "for my own good." He outlived the other Cartwrights: Blocker died in 1972, Greene in 1987 and Landon in 1991. Copyright � 2010, The Los Angeles Times ************************* Los Angeles, California (CNN) -- Actor Pernell Roberts, who played the eldest Cartwright brother in TV's "Bonanza," died at his Malibu, California, home Sunday at 81, his lawyer said. Younger TV viewers may remember Roberts from the lead role in "Trapper John, M.D.," a medical drama that aired on CBS for seven years, ending in 1986. Roberts, a native of Waycross, Georgia, spent much of his adult life "pursuing his dream of equality for all," according to a family statement released by his lawyer, Richard Stone. Roberts spent the first decade of his acting career on stage -- including Broadway -- before he moved to Hollywood to act in movies. His first film was "Desire Under the Elms," starring Sophia Loren and Burl Ives.

In 1959, he landed the role of Adam Cartwright, the handsome and smart son of rancher Ben Cartwright (Lorne Greene) in the new western series "Bonanza." His character was serious and introspective, in contrast to younger half-brothers Hoss (Dan Blocker) and Little Joe (Michael Landon). The move to a television series "was a difficult transition," the family statement said. "Accustomed to freely moving from part to part, now being in a wildly popular show, without costume changes, about three grown men living at home with their father, he found did not hold much creative interest for him," it said. Roberts walked alongside the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in the historic 1965 march from Selma to Montgomery in Alabama, the family said. "On the set of 'Bonanza,' he protested the use of all white crews and guest stars, finding some support but never enough to satisfy his sense of outrage," the statement said. Roberts left the popular western after the end of the sixth season in 1965, although "Bonanza" stayed in production for another eight years.

While the show's storyline kept open the possibility of his return to the Ponderosa ranch, Roberts never did. He never gained much of a foothold in film, but stage acting kept Roberts busy for more than a decade. He also guest starred in more than 60 TV series. His role of Dr. "Trapper" John McIntyre, starting in 1979, was a spin-off of a character from the hit TV comedy "M*A*S*H." Roberts played the balding physician working in a San Francisco hospital nearly three decades after he returned from the Korean War. His last regular TV job was in 1991 when he was host of the short-lived ABC police anthology "FBI: The Untold Stories." Roberts was married four times. His only son, Chris, was killed in a motorcycle crash in 1989. His fourth wife, Eleanor Criswill, was by his side when he died Sunday, the family said. CNN's Brittany Kaplan contributed to this report. Pernell Roberts Tribute | Memorial to Pernell Roberts Prev section About Pernell (Betty) Myrtle Morgan Roberts.

During his high school years, he played the horn, acted in school and church plays and sang in local USO shows â€” pursuing a wide range of occupations before pursuing acting. He attended, but did not graduate from, Georgia Tech. While serving for two years in the United States Marine Corps, he participated in the Marine Corps Band. He subsequently attended the University of Maryland, also without graduating. He began his acting career in off-Broadway and Broadway theatre in New York City. He won a Drama Desk Award in 1955 for his performance in an off-Broadway rendition of Macbeth, later working with the Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. In 1958, Pernell Roberts guest-starred Continued overleaf... Next section About Pernell as Captain Jacques Chavez on the NBC adventure series Northwest Passage based on the life of Major Robert Rogers in the French and Indian War. He appeared with fellow guest star Fay Spain in the 1958 episode "Pick up the Gun" of Tombstone Territory.

In 1958 he played the lead villain in the 31st episode of Have Gun - Will Travel, portraying a killer boss exploiter of Chinese Coolie laborers entitled "Hey Boy's Revenge." The episode drew critical acclaim for shedding some light on the contribution of indentured Chinese workers in building the U.S. west and for also carrying the socially-conscious message that "white man's laws can deliver justice for a minority." In 1959, he co-starred in the film Ride Lonesome. Continued... Prev section About Pernell />Pernell Roberts played Ben Cartwright's eldest son, Adam, in the Western television series Bonanza â€” a character with a university education, unlike his brothers, and variously described as urbane, intense, introspective, quiet, sullen and serious. Pernell Roberts fulfilled but did not extend his six-year contract for Bonanza, and when he left the series his character was eliminated with the simple explanation that Adam had "moved away." Pernell Roberts made guest appearances on TV shows including The Big Valley, Mission: Impossible, The Wild Wild West, Gunsmoke, Mannix, The Odd Couple, Hawaii Five-O, and The Hardy Boys.

He played Jigger in an ABC television presentation of Carousel and Rhett Continued overleaf... Pernell Roberts - Bonanza | <i>Bonanza<> Privacy Pernell Roberts - Bonanza Roberts played Ben Cartwright's eldest son, Adam , in the Western television series Bonanza — an architectural engineer with a university education, unlike his brothers. Adam has been variously described as urbane, intense, introspective, quiet, sullen and serious. Roberts , having largely been "a stage actor, accustomed as he was to a rigorous diet of the classics" (Playbill January 26, 2010) and to freely move about from part to part, found the "transition to a television series," playing the same character, "without costume changes," a difficult one ("Bonanza" and "Trapper John" Star dies, January 25, 2010, Alan Duke, CNN). "It was perhaps not surprising that, despite enormous success, he bolted from "Bonanza" after the 1964-65 season, criticizing the show's simple-minded content and lack of minority actors..." .

It particularly distressed him that his character, a man in his 30's, had to defer continually to the wishes of his widowed father and he reportedly disliked the series itself, calling it — "junk" television and accused NBC of "perpetuating banality and contributing to the dehumanization of the industry." The equally self-critical Roberts ("I guess I'll never be satisfied with my own work"-Chicago Tribune, August 19, 1965), "had long disdained the medium's commercialization of his craft and its mass production, assembly-line mindset" (The Tidi Tudorancea Bulletin, English Edition, October 6, 2010- web). Frustrated with Bonanza and angry, he told a reporter in 1965, "I feel I'm an aristocrat in my field of endeavor. My being part of Bonanza was like Isaac Stern sitting in with Lawrence Welk" (Ponderosa Gold Under A Painted Sky, Joanne Stang, p. 305 in "Popular Culture," by David Manning, 1975). In much later interviews, Roberts denied statements about Bonanza attributed to him.

"I did not enjoy Bonanza anymore...but I never said those things people said I said." (The Pittsburgh Press, 1979). He was however, "too smart not to recognize its weaknesses" (TV Guide, 1982). In a 1963 Washington Post interview, he asked a reporter, "Isn't it a bit silly for three adult males to have to ask father's permission for everything they do?" ( Washington Post , January 25, 2010). "They told me the four characters (Lorne Greene, patriarch Ben, Dan Blocker and Michael Landon as his brothers) would be carefully defined and the scripts carefully prepared, none of it ever happened," he complained to The Associated Press in 1964. He objected to how Bonanza portrayed the relationship between the "father" and adult "sons," describing it as adolescent (( Mike Douglas Show , 1966), lacking in "truth" and lacking in "reality" ("Weekly World News, August 4, 1981, page 29). Roberts acknowledged reasons for Bonanza's appeal, but pointed to his personal need for story lines with greater social relevance, adult themes and dialogue.

He wanted Bonanza to be "a little more grown up," (Mike Douglas Show , 1966). He also noted too that he was not suited to the "procedural" and "confining aspect" of series television, another reason for his dissatisfaction, while on the show (Mike Douglas Show, 1966). Roberts, had had high hopes for what he could contribute to Bonanza, was disappointed with the direction of the show, the limitations imposed on his Bonanza character and on his acting range. In a newspaper interview he said, "I haven't grown at all since the series began...I have an impotent role. Wherever I turn there's the father image," (This Time Pernell Won't Need a Tuba, Washington Post, May 1, 1963, Lawrence Laurent).

Finally, after disagreements with writers and producers over the quality of the scripts, characterization, and Bonanza's refusal to allow him to perform elsewhere while on contract, Roberts "turned his back on Hollywood wisdom and well-meant advice," and left, largely to return to legitimate theater (Washington Post, January 25, 2010; New York Daily News January 26, 2010, Mike Douglas Show, 1965, 1966), Henry Darrow Archival Interview; USA Today, January 25, 2010). Roberts fulfilled but did not extend his six-year contract for Bonanza, and when he left the series, his character was eliminated with the explanation that Adam had "moved away." Later episodes suggested variously that Adam was "at sea", had moved to Europe, or was on the East Coast, running that end of the family business. The last episode Pernell Roberts worked on was "Dead and Gone", air date April 4, 1965.

He appeared in the next two that aired which were filmed prior to "Dead and Gone" — "A Good Night's Rest", air date April 11, 1965 and "To Own The World", air date April 18, 1965. The story line was kept open in case Roberts wished to return, but he never did. In television interviews, Roberts said that he would have stayed with Bonanza, had he been allowed to do so on a part-time basis to enable him to return to theater (Mike Douglas Show, 1966). Bonanza producer David Dortort described Roberts as "rebellious, outspoken... and aloof," but, as one who "could make any scene he was in better..." (Archive Interview-web). In a later archive interview , he regretted not having insisted on a "marriage for Adam" and having Roberts continue on the show as a semi-regular. He added, "I must confess..I was "too hard on him. I did not appreciate him.

I knew he was good, but I didn't realize he was that good...none better." (Archive Interview 2002; Bonanza, The Official First Season, Volume 1, Feature, CBS/Paramount, 2009). In the last two "Bonanza" movies that aired on NBC in the early 1990s, the story line stated that Adam, now in Australia, had equaled his father's success, dominating the engineering/construction business. Roberts was the only accomplished singer of the original cast, though David Canary, who joined Bonanza in 1967, had a background in voice and performed on Broadway. During Roberts' Bonanza years, he recorded Come All Ye Fair and Tender Ladies, a folk music album which Allmusic calls "...the softer, lyrical side of folk music — pleasant and not challenging, but quite rewarding in its unassuming way." The album, released by RCA Victor and arranged by Dick Rosmini, is available on compact disc only as part of the fourth disc of the Bonanza 4-CD boxed set on Bear Family Records.

On the Bonanza box set albums, Roberts also sings "Early One Morning", "In the Pines", "The New Born King", "The Bold Soldier", "Mary Ann", "They Call the Wind Mariah", "Sylvie", "Lily of the West", "The Water is Wide", "Rake and a Ramblin Boy", "A Quiet Girl", "Shady Grove", "Alberta", and "Empty Pocket Blues". Read more about this topic: Pernell Roberts Terms related to pernell roberts: Related Phrases

Question: Pernell Roberts played which character in a TV western series?
Answer: Adam Cartwright